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2021-04-01 WeissKATHY WEISS’ QUESTIONS IN RED IN RESPONSE TO GARRETT SIMON LETTER. Please add to EIR Scope comments & questions. Thank you. March 26, 2021 Dear Neighbors, On behalf of the development team at Coral Mountain, thank you for this opportunity to provide clarity on our proposed development of the Coral Mountain Resort on the vacant land west of Madison Street. We are grateful for the many supporters of our project who understand the upscale nature of our development and its benefits to the surrounding community. We have been made aware of misinformation being circulated to neighboring communities that is leading to confusion and questions. This letter will provide detailed information on our approval process, opportunity for public comment and a list of Frequently Asked Questions. Since our in-person community presentations in early 2020, our ability to process permits and entitlements was slowed due to the pandemic. However, our development plans have not changed since those presentations and we continue to work diligently with the City of La Quinta towards approval of the project. As many of you know, at the request of the City of La Quinta, we are completing and processing a full Environmental Impact Report (EIR). We welcome this increased analysis of our proposed project to ensure the outcome yields the best possible project for the community. The EIR requires that third party independent professionals who hires and pays for the independent professionals? Has Meriwether or Sunrise hired any of them in any capacity prior?) study all key elements and any possible impacts of the proposed project. The first step is the Notice of Preparation document recently advertised by the City to ensure all appropriate components of the project are fully evaluated. Through the Notice of Preparation, the City is accepting public and agency comments on the EIR scope and has extended the comment period until April 2. (The City Planner said DEADLINE needed to be extended due to Meriwether requesting a Developer’s Agreement after the Scope Meeting Notice was sent out. Is that correct?) All comments can be sent to the City via email at ConsultingPlanner@laquintaca.gov. The City is hosting a virtual meeting on March 30 at 4:00 pm PST as an additional venue for comments on the EIR scope. You may receive the virtual meeting link by emailing the City at the email referenced above. There will be multiple opportunities for the public to review and comment on the information over the remainder of 2021. We are committed to keep all the surrounding communities fully informed and ensure (Will you keep the same people informed of future dates and deadlines, that you sent this email to?) that you understand the process and timing. As summarized below, the anticipated timeline from today to final action by City Council is 7 – 8 months. Why do the press releases and brochures portray that this project is already approved, and construction has started, when in fact, it is still in the approval stage? Majority of my neighbors think the approval process is over and City approval was given. I consider this purposeful deception by the Developer in all-out effort to squash the public from questioning project. I respectfully request that Meriwether amends it press releases to the public and not insinuate that Coral Mountain construction has started. • Draft EIR – Once the EIR scope is approved, the Draft EIR will be finalized and circulated for public review and comment for a period of 45 days. We anticipate this will occur in May or June. Will you alert the same list of people you sent this letter to ? • Final EIR – All comments will then be addressed and a Final EIR will be circulated to commenting agencies prior to consideration by the City. Please Define “commenting agency.” • Public Hearings – Once the EIR is complete, comments addressed, and any plan revisions made, the City will schedule a public hearing before the Planning Commission. Following action by the Planning Commission (one or more meetings) the matter will move to a public hearing before the City Council with final action to be taken after one or more meetings. To summarize, public comments will be invited and received: • On the Notice of Preparation through April 2. • After completion and circulation of the Draft EIR. • At one or more Planning Commission hearings. • At one or more City Council hearings. The overall objective is to create an upscale private resort community that will complement the City of Meriwether contradicts itself. Press releases and brochures have said it is Public, others say it is private. What is your definition of a ‘GUEST’? Is a GUEST sponsored & accompanied by a Member? Is a GUEST a person that rents a hotel room? Please Define “MEMBER”. What type of Memberships will be offered? Meriwether definition of MEMBER & GUEST are of utmost importance. How many memberships will be available? Explain what Amenities come with each type of membership. Is a homeowner automatically a Member? What are the rules for membership? Cost of a membership? Are the Special Events PRIVATE or PUBLIC? Members Only? GUESTS? What is total number days of private events? 4 four-day weekends is 16 days of Public Events. Coachella Fest and Stagecoach are 12 days total. Meriwether is requesting the neighbors be burdened with the collateral nuisance and damage that comes with crowds coming all day and night to a Special Event. Explain how this “compliments” this low key neighborhood. What are the public hours of Special Event days? What are the operating hours of the workforce and equipment required to set up a Special Event? La Quinta, and, more specifically, the immediate area around our property. Our business plan is predicated upon the sale of luxury single family residences. If project is predicated on sale of luxury homes, why did Meriwether change the # of “HOMES” to “CASITA RENTALS’? by adding 104 Casita Rentals to the 150 Hotel Keys (hotel rooms= 254 total) That is more than 1/3 of total “DWELLING UNITS”. As your project is driven by sale of luxury homes, not lots, who is the builder? Is this Builder in any way connected to Sunrise and or Andalusia Corporations? Will Meriwether allow other builders to build high end homes for lot buyers? We will not be successful if our amenities and Wave Park is now 33% Hotel rooms &Suites, 33% high priced lots, & 33% lower priced lots. This is a RESORT. programming are detrimental to future on-site residents and, by extension, we cannot negatively impact neighboring communities. All people buying at The Wave Park are doing so to be close to the Wave Basin. The neighbors bought their homes knowing Andalusia West was zoned low- density residential community with golf course. I did my due diligence before purchasing my home- the parcel was not zoned for Tourist/Development. Explain how Meriwether will mitigate the concerns, after all is built and operating? With fewer COVID restrictions in place, we are happy to meet with neighbors in person to continue sharing details on our project and the process to ensure accurate information is being disseminated to the community. I am also personally available by email or phone at gsimon@meriwetherco.com or (970) 596- 6642. Sincerely, Garrett Simon Partner, Meriwether Companies FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS KATHY WEISS ASKS MORE QUESTIONS BELOW: How big is the project? Coral Mountain is situated on approximately 400 acres and is currently approved for 750 homes and a golf course. Our proposed project is a private community that includes 600 (104 Rental Casitas are not homes) and up to a 150-key Hotel. = 254 Overnight Rentals, built at once, 496 dwelling units -built by market demand. Wave Park is now 254 hotel rooms or Rental Casitas. hotel with a wave basin and other community amenities. Are the community amenities private? Are public amenities inside the Wave Park development? If amenities are inside Wave Park, explain how the Wave Park is PUBLIC? The public will have access to the hotel, how is that PRIVATE? Will the public be allowed to watch the Wave Basin Surfers when dining? Will there be Patio dining? How many bars and restaurants? How far are the restaurant(s) and bars from the Wave Basin? What type of entertainment will be offered to dining and bar guests? Music? What are restaurants and bars operating hours? How many people will restaurants seat? How many people will Bars seat? Will Hotel Guests & Homeowners have priority over other dining reservations? restaurant and bar on a reservation basis along with the commercial development at the Southwest Corner of Ave 58 and Madison. By committing to a private community, we are able to maintain similar traffic levels as the currently approved project. What about increased traffic for Special Events? How will that be controlled? By LQ City police and Riverside Sheriff? There will be an increase of speeding, accidents, driving DUI, and crime. All causing stress to local residents. How is that complimentary to the neighborhood? What are the hours of Special Events? When will landscaping be installed along Madison? Perimeter landscaping on our property along Madison and Ave 58 will be included in the initial phase of construction. Construction of The Wave Pool? Too vague. This area is the “front door” to our community, requiring early completion to ensure the property looks great for the home sale process. What are the anticipated prices for lots and homes at Coral Mountain? Similar to other exclusive private residential communities do not have public hotel rooms, nor un-escorted guests. in La Quinta, our homesites are large with most ranging in size from 12,000 to 40,000 sf. Prices for large estate lots will begin at more than $2 million and finished homes in the village core will range from $2-$5 million. What type of Dwelling Units planned for outside the Core? How tall is the hotel? The hotel is still planned to have a portion of the rooms and facilities in a 2-story configuration, with a majority of the rooms in 1 story casitas. A 3-story slender structure with a footprint of approximately 1,000 sf is currently planned on the edge of the wave basin for viewing and operations. How many feet, not stories, high is the hotel and Viewing tower/aka Slender Structure? What are dimensions of “slender structure”? What are operating hours of “Slender Structure? “ Where is the Wave Announcer speaking from? Will Wave Announcer voice be amplified? How many speakers are needed for Wave Announcer to be heard over 17 acres? Will TV crews be filming from the ‘Slender structure”? Will lights and amplified noise come from the ‘slender structure”? Will short term rentals be allowed? Short term rentals (at the option of the homeowner) are proposed for the community; however, we plan to manage 100% of the rentals through an onsite 24/7 management program. While we are confident we can address the issues related to short term rentals through onsite management and security, we understand this is a hot topic in La Quinta and look forward to working with the City to ensure compliance with all regulations. Extremely vague. Will you go by LQ STR rules and regs, even though you are not obligated to? Why are lights for the wave basin required? Due to the short daylight hours during the winter, directional lights are planned to allow for operations to 18- hole Golf courses, as zoned, do not need lights nor announcers to be useable. continue into the early evening hours. What are time is “evening hours”? The proposed lighting has been designed to meet the City of La Quinta requirements (vague, I need specifics. Will lighting be under Residential Guidelines or Tourist/Commercial Guidelines?) and ensure there is no light spillage outside of the basin property. What is the Basin Property? The entire parcel of land? Please provide light spill charts. The proposed lighting plan consists of single-mounted poles with directed LED lights with full cutoff and will not appear anything like stadium lights for tennis or athletic courts. The lights and sounds produced by the activities are meant to be confined to the areas they are being produced, and not disturb the residences within this project let alone those that are bordering our project. Are “Public” areas of the Hotel and Rental Casitas lit at dark ? Are parking areas lit? How large are the parking lots? How many parking lots? What is surface of parking lots? Asphalt? Gravel? Sand? Grass? Will I hear the wave basin? The noise generated from the wave basin is the movement of water, similar to the ocean. The existing facility in Lemoore has been recorded by the sound engineer and this information has been incorporated Oceans can be deafening. Beach goers can leave the ocean and return home to a quiet home. Wave Park neighbors cannot unless they sell their home. into the noise study for the project. We expect the findings from the final report to confirm all City of La Quinta noise standards are met. This sound study is not professional nor scientific. It was not done on premises. It is comparing apples to oranges. Surf Ranch has soft ground. Coral Mt is hard ground. Surf Ranch is flat and green with agricultural crops. Coral Mountain has valleys, Mountains, and flat desert floor. Surf Ranch does not contain: a 150- room hotel, 154 Rental Casitas, restaurant, bars, and 456 dwelling units, each with people staying overnight. The guests, by invitation only, arriving at Surf Ranch, are on their best behavior. 3-4 Travel Campers are parked at Kelly Slater Surf Ranch. This is not a scientific study and is misleading to the Public. While not scientific like the above-mentioned study, last year we coordinated a site visit for a concerned neighbor which resulted in confirmation that the wave basin was barely audible at 300’ distance with only an 8’ wooden fence in between. His sound level meter recorded readings less than 50 decibels at this distance, significantly lower than the City of La Quinta’s 65 decibel threshold for single family residential use. At 2,600’ from the site, he was unable to hear any noise. It is important to note that the area surrounding the Lemoore facility is undeveloped flat land, very different than the plans at Coral Mountain Apples and oranges again. This is hearsay and not sufficient for an EIR report. This sound test was performed by amateurs, not professionals, nor w/ professional measuring devices. Sounds were not measured at intervals throughout the day, and only in 1 location. Your information is not valid. which will contain buildings and landscaping to further insulate the wave basin. The following notes the approximate shortest distance from the wave basin to the closest homes in each neighborhood: The Quarry – 2,400’ (Coral Mountain sits in between the wave basin and all homes at The Quarry) Trilogy – 2,600’ Andalusia – 4,100’ Ave 60 Private Residence – 870’ Will speakers be used to communicate with surfers in the basin? The existing wave basin operation in Lemoore, CA utilizes a speaker system to make periodic (every 150 seconds, for 30 second duration) safety. How many speakers are used in the speaker system? What are hours for Wave operation? What are hours for Wave maintenance? How will this noise be mitigated? Kelly Slater, Mike Schwab, Kelly Slater Wave Design Company, and Ca. Assemblyman, Ian Calderon, sponsored legislation # AB 1161, to change the Calif. Health & Safety Code, June 13, 2019. Coral Mt parcel was purchased May 2019. KSWDC and Mike Schwab’s Big Sky companies retracted the Wave Pool Permit application in West Palm Beach, Fla. On an 80- acre parcel Mike Schwab purchased. #AB1161 legislation requests that hygienic standards of water in the Wave Pool/Basin be lowered. (Even though brain-eating amoebas have been found and verified in Wave Pool water.) Is this what La Quinta City Council wants for The Jewel of the Crown, South La Quinta? announcements and has been included in the noise analysis for our EIR. While we are confident the noise study will show the speakers will not be audible off of our property, we will continue to look for alternatives to ensure this does not become a nuisance. These speakers are NOT used to project music across the wave basin. How will the music be projected? Amplified? What type of music? D.J., live bands, Opera, Symphony? How many different sources of music will be allowed to play at same time? Will the music being played be the same song at the same time? Or different steams of music? A “Battle of the Bands” atmosphere? Where will music emanate from? How many music/entertainment stages? Where and How many locations? Will short term guests be able to amplify music outside? Will personal watercraft (jet skis) operate in the wave basin? Currently in the existing facility, one jet ski is used to reposition surfers within the basin and for life safety Again, that does not answer the question. This Wave Pool is larger and operating 365 days/year. Surf Ranch is by invitation only. Apples to Oranges. In Surf Ranch videos, the jet-ski operates non-stop. I expect it will be similar, if not more. What other water vessels will be used? What are the hours of usage? Are jet skis used for pool maintenance? If more than 1 jet ski is needed, how will the extra noise be mitigated? Jet skis have been measured at 95-165 decibels. That noise level is higher the City Regs. purposes. We anticipate this will also be the case at Coral Mountain. Vague- not fact. Need to know exact sound levels of all: jet-skis, wave, train, announcer, music over 24- hour day combined., and when and where sound readings were taken. They will be noise from the spectators and surfers added. How will impacts from the four proposed annual public events impact the neighborhood? It is imperative to note the application as submitted does not give us the unilateral right to host an event. What “rights” does the application give the Developer? Nonetheless, Meriwether plans to have Special Events, totaling more days than Coachella Fest and Stagecoach combined. The EIR will study impacts should be applied for Special Events. we apply for and receive approval for events. We will be required to go through the City of La Quinta’s special use permit process which requires significant detail to address items such as noise, traffic, etc. This would be a public process and include input from the community. What is nature of Special Events? What are the components of Special Events? How many days per year? Special Event Hours, # of attendees? # of cars allowed to park on site? What type of extra activity is associated when holding a Special Event? I look forward to the EIR professionals’ answers to my questions. Sincerely, Kathy Weiss kathy@crystalspringsranch.co